Michigan women take down No. 6 North Carolina in Jumpman Invitational

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Dealing with a top-10 group on a giant stage, the Michigan ladies made a serious assertion within the Queen Metropolis.

The Wolverines beat sixth-ranked North Carolina on Tuesday evening, 76-68, within the opening recreation of the inaugural Jumpman Invitational.

Michigan improved to 11-1 because of red-hot taking pictures within the first quarter and a robust end. Leigha Brown completed with a game-high 25 factors. Laila Phelia added 20.

The Wolverines went to the Elite Eight in final season’s NCAA Match, and up to now look each bit like a group able to making one other deep run.

They actually did on Tuesday, making 12-of-16 pictures within the opening quarter to determine management contained in the Spectrum Middle, house of the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets. An early second-quarter flurry pushed Michigan’s result in 23.

North Carolina acquired inside six late within the fourth, however Michigan did sufficient to shut it out.

It was girls first on the Jumpman Invitational, which options two nights of doubleheaders among the many first 4 colleges to signal sponsorship offers with Jordan Model in basketball and soccer. The Michigan males will play North Carolina on Wednesday evening (7 p.m., ESPN), with Florida and Oklahoma matching up within the different two video games.

On Tuesday, Juwan Howard and the Michigan males’s group confirmed up within the second quarter, after a group dinner, to help the ladies.

They noticed a Michigan group proving it’s nonetheless a nationwide drive, even with out program legend Naz Hillmon. Michigan’s offense was on hearth a lot of the primary half. The protection was sturdy all through, limiting the Tar Heels to 32 % taking pictures. Brown completed 9-of-15 from the sphere and added eight rebounds and 4 assists, hitting a number of huge pictures late to seal the win.

Michigan’s main scorer on the season, Emily Kiser, completed with 9 factors on 3-of-10 taking pictures. Freshman Chyra Evans tallied seven factors and 9 rebounds.

North Carolina fell to 9-2, with its different loss coming to a different Massive Ten group, Indiana. Deja Kelly matched her season common with 15 factors however made simply 2-of-13 pictures, largely attributable to Phelia’s protection.

Michigan resumes Massive Ten play on Dec. 28 at Nebraska. Michigan, presently ranked nineteenth, will probably be greater by then.

Tuesday’s recreation acquired slightly dicey for Michigan late. On one North Carolina possession, Deja Kelly drew a foul, Brown was hit with a technical, and Carolina made a 3. The end result was 5 factors and Michigan’s lead was minimize to 62-53 with 8:17 left. The margin was once more single digits, with Michigan struggling towards North Carolina’s zone protection, earlier than Brown hit a pull-up jumper to beat the shot clock. Maddie Nolan adopted together with her first 3. Michigan led by 13 with 5:38 to go.

The margin was all the way down to eight, the smallest it had been because the first quarter, when Brown delivered once more, burying a foul-line jumper off the dribble.

Kiser scored subsequent, with Michigan’s protection ensuring there was no wild comeback.

The primary half went largely Michigan’s manner. Phelia’s wide-open nook 3 made it 58-39 with 5:27 left within the third earlier than Michigan had one other dry spell. Carolina made it attention-grabbing — a layup and 5 Deja Kelly free throws minimize Michigan’s result in 12 and introduced the pro-Tar Heel crowd to life. However Brown’s sturdy rebound in site visitors and lengthy outlet to a streaking Phelia resulted in two made free throws. Michigan led 60-48 getting into the ultimate quarter.

Brown scored Michigan’s first 5 factors of the second quarter, together with an acrobatic left-handed end for an and-one. Freshman Alyssa Crockett drained two 3s — the microphones on the basket amplifying the swishes — to cap a 12-0 run and make it 47-24 Michigan halfway via the second quarter.

North Carolina went 5 minutes with no level earlier than an 8-0 run. Kiser, who needs to be one of many school basketball’s leaders in costs taken, drew one on two consecutive possessions. Nonetheless, it was Michigan’s flip to go chilly. They, too, went 5 minutes with no level. Evans’ layup within the closing seconds ended the drought and made it 49-32 at half.

Michigan dominated the primary quarter. Brown match a long-range cross via a good window to Evans for a fast-break layup to cap a 6-0 spurt and provides Michigan an 11-6 lead.

The Wolverines outscored North Carolina 23-9 over the ultimate 4 minutes of the primary quarter to take a 35-20 lead. Brown and Phelia mixed for twenty-four within the first, outscoring North Carolina’s total group.